Father's Day
by Brandywine421
Summary: Sandy knew he wasn't the perfect dad (although, truth be told, he thought he had this parenting thing pretty well nailed), but he never expected his family would just forget Father's Day.


_2) Sandy knew he wasn't the perfect dad (although, truth be told, he thought   
he had this parenting thing pretty well nailed), but he never expected his   
family would just forget Father's Day.  
  
Stipulations:  
Must be Sandy POV.  
Someone other than Kirsten has to kiss Sandy.  
You must reveal something from Sandy's childhood.  
Ryan must make at least one comment about his own father._

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything OC related_

_AN: For the OC sentence challenge._

**Father's Day**

_Sandy__ knew he wasn't the perfect dad (although, truth be told, he thought he had this parenting thing pretty well nailed), but he never expected his family would just forget Father's Day._

"Honey?"

I mumbled a reply. She's been married to me long enough that I knew she'd understand.

"Aren't you going to go surfing?"

"What time is it?"

"Around seven."

I groaned and rolled over, giving her a kiss before climbing out of our entirely too comfortable bed.

I got dressed in my swimming trunks and gathered my towel and things for my morning surf. I glanced at my watch. Sunday. Father's Day.

Usually Seth would get Rosa to make me a nice New York breakfast of pizza and hot dogs but I didn't smell anything cooking as I walked down the stairs. He'd started the tradition when he was eight and never missed a Father's Day. He was a good kid. I was proud of him.

I wasn't expecting anything from Ryan. He had his own father. Besides, he could be depressed about being a father. Or not being a father. I didn't know but this day might be hard for him, too.

It'd been a long summer already for all of us, but surely Seth hadn't forgotten.

The kitchen was empty. Rosa was off today so I grabbed a bagel and went to the truck. Maybe by the time I got back, things would be ready.

At the beach, the waves weren't impressive but I had a couple of good runs before I decided to go home. The bagel hadn't been enough and I needed coffee. I needed to wash the salt off my body before celebrating this day with my family.

When I got home, there was still nothing happening in the kitchen. Ryan was sitting at the counter with his spoon hanging out of his mouth as he perused an architecture magazine that Kirsten must have left out. His cereal sat untouched in a bowl in front of him.

"'Morning, kid. What's going on?" I asked.

He shrugged a reply. He hadn't been the same since returning from Chino. He still hadn't given us an explanation, he'd just shown up one day and asked if he was still welcome in our home. I hadn't pushed him, I wanted him to tell us on his own. And we were just so damned happy to have him back.

He'd been back three weeks and I still didn't have the nerve to ask him what had happened with Teresa and the baby.

When Ryan had left, we'd inadvertently lost Seth, too. The kid was so devastated that he'd left us a cryptic note and sailed away. He'd returned the day after Ryan.

Unlike Ryan, Seth had given us an overly detailed description of his trip. He'd made it to Catalina and stayed in a hotel that he'd charged to Caleb's credit card. The days after his return had been great. I had my sons back. Both of them. Ryan was quiet, but we were used to it. Seth's bubbly personality just filled in the spots when the brooding got to be too much for us.

"Sandy. Happy Father's Day," Ryan said as I poured my coffee.

"Thank you. Are you going to see your father?" I asked before I thought about it. The kid never talked about his mother and I'd never heard him mention his father. I shouldn't have asked.

"My dad? Hell, no," He replied immediately, clearly surprised that I'd ask. His face flashed with disgust before returning to his normal blank slate.

The kitchen was painfully silent.

"You have to earn the title. Father, I mean," Ryan said quietly.

"You…"

"I haven't seen him in years. I hope I never have to see him," He added quietly.

I let the conversation drop. It was more than I expected him to say. I wouldn't make him talk about it.

"What about your dad?" He asked.

My dad. I didn't want to talk about him. Not even today. I didn't think about him but I had to admit that he had influenced the way I raised Seth. My dad had left when I was five and no one had heard from him since. I didn't remember much, just that he had left me. And that was all that I needed to know about him. I'd never abandon my son. Either of them. I was a good father, and my kids reflect that.

"Sorry, it's none of my business…"

"The only thing I remember about my father is that he smelled like peanuts," I said slowly. God, it'd been a long time since I talked about this.

"Peanuts?" Ryan raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I don't know why. It's all I remember. The last time I saw him, he gave me a stick of gum, juicy fruit. And he smelled like peanuts. I asked him about it and he…he gave me another piece of gum and promised that he'd bring peanuts home for me the next day."

"He never came back," Ryan stated.

I shook my head. My mother had cleaned out his things by the time I got up the next morning. He was just gone and we weren't allowed to mention him again.

"I'm sorry. That sucks."

"Yes, it does."

I returned my attention to my coffee.

"Where's Seth?" He asked me.

"I don't know. Haven't seen him today," Ryan shrugged.

"Everything okay?"

He shrugged again.

The boys hadn't been as close since their returns but Kirsten and I both agreed that they'd work it out. Seth was a good kid, a little spoiled, but a genuinely good kid. Ryan, too. He wasn't spoiled but he'd do anything for Seth and he'd proved it time and time again. They'd work it out.

"You want some breakfast?" He asked as I turned to go upstairs for Kirsten.

"You offering me your cereal?"

"This cereal…is soggy. I was thinking pancakes and eggs…" He murmured, poking at his bowl with the spoon.

"Sure. I'm sure Kirsten and Seth will appreciate it, too."

I walked up the stairs and turned to go toward Seth's room. Before I could knock, the door swung open and I felt unfamiliar lips pressed against mine as someone pulled my face to theirs.

I recognized Summer as she let out a cry and released me. I was too stunned to say anything.

"Oh my God, Ew! I thought you were Seth, oh my god, I kissed you…"

"Summer…" I started.

"I'm so sorry…that was disgusting…um, no offense, but…"

"Summer?" Seth walked out of the hall bathroom. "Dad, I don't know what you're thinking but this isn't…"

I didn't know what I was thinking either. Seth's girlfriend just kissed me. French.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Cohen…" Summer started talking.

"She just got here, she **_so_** did not stay all night…because that would be wrong…" Seth talked over Summer's voice.

"I didn't mean to kiss you, I thought you were Seth, I just wanted to say good morning…" Summer continued.

"You kissed my Dad?" Seth turned to his girlfriend.

"I heard someone coming and you said no one else would be up this early…" Summer said to Seth.

I turned away and walked back down the stairs. Ryan gave me a curious look as I walked past him. I needed to surf a little longer. Maybe I could start this father's day over without kissing my son's girlfriend who he'd spent the night with in our house. At least I'd have breakfast when I got back.

When I returned, I didn't smell pancakes. Or pizza. I smelled smoke.

"Kirsten, I told you to let me do it…what did you do?" Ryan's voice was annoyed but I could tell that he was holding his tongue. The kid was impossibly patient.

"I just wanted to help…" Kirsten was saying.

"Step away from the stove, Kirsten. Please."

"What's going on in here?" I asked with a smile. Kirsten was opening the doors and windows to try and release the smoke before it set off the smoke detectors.

"Ryan's making breakfast," Kirsten said cheerfully.

"Kirsten's starting fires," Ryan muttered at the same time. There was a small fire in the frying pan and he proceeded to dump a box of baking soda into the pan, putting out the flames. The smoke intensified as the fire was out and the alarms started to sound.

"No pancakes," Ryan said. He turned his attention to the other pan on the stove. "I was gone, for like, two minutes…did you touch the eggs?"

"I just…" Kirsten was red with embarrassment.

"No eggs," Ryan said as he scraped them into the garbage disposal.

"That's okay, Ryan…" I started.

"I'll order something, since this is my fault," Kirsten said immediately.

"It's cool. I'm not really hungry anymore anyway." He gave her a slight smile. "Maybe you should try sausages. I've heard they're best when they're **_smoked_**." He patted me on the back as he retreated to the poolhouse.

"Sandy, I'm sorry, I just wanted to help…"

"I know, and I love you," I embraced her.

"Are you all right? I know it's Father's Day and there's no breakfast…" She said quietly.

"It's okay. Both my boys are home and that's all that matters," I responded as she nuzzled into my neck. She smelled so good. Like candy.

"Seth caught a ride with Summer. They're going sailing."

He didn't remember. My own son didn't remember that it was Father's Day.

At least he was home. That would have to be enough.

I wouldn't let Kirsten know that I was upset because then she'd tell Seth and he'd make this big production about it. "They didn't invite Ryan?" I released her and turned away to pour myself some more coffee.

"He said he had things to do," She replied.

"Like brood."

"And mope."

"He's okay."

"Sure, he is. I'm sure Teresa's fine, too." She said quietly.

I knew she was worried about the girl but we trusted Ryan. He wouldn't have left her alone in Chino without a good reason.

"Summer spent the night," I said, changing the subject.

"Here? Seth knows better…how'd you catch him?" She asked.

"She kissed me."

"What?" She was laughing already.

"She thought I was Seth and kissed me…"

"You're just so irresistible," She teased, tickling me.

"Stop that…" I laughed.

"The kids are gone…do you want to go upstairs?" She asked.

"I need a shower…" I said between kisses.

"I'll help…"

I didn't see Seth or Ryan for the rest of the morning. Ryan had the shades drawn in the poolhouse and Seth was out with Summer, I assumed. Kirsten had to go into the office to take care of some things and I was left alone in the house.

It would usually be a blessing, I could sit in front of the TV and drink beer and watch baseball without the bustling of the family. But I'd wanted to spend the day with my family, I didn't want alone time today.

I shouldn't complain. I sat down with a beer and flipped on the TV. After several cycles through the channels, I had found nothing. I'd surfed enough this morning and I didn't want to go to the beach. I got up and popped in a DVD.

I sat back down on the couch. I'd seen this movie hundreds of times but it always made me smile. Office Space was a classic that I'd never gotten tired of. I dozed off to the sound of Jennifer Aniston accepting a date for kung fu.

"Shh…don't wake him up…"

"Don't shush me, go get Ryan…"

I opened my eyes and recognized Summer disappearing through the doors. Seth was putting several packages on the dining room table.

I didn't know what was going on but I recognized a box that couldn't be anything except a cake. He did remember. I felt a rush of pride that my son hadn't forgotten. I should never have doubted him.

I sat up and smiled as Seth dropped a handful of packages in surprise.

"Dad, hey…"

"Hey, Seth," I yawned. I stood up and he approached me.

"Um, well, Happy Father's day, man." He gave me a hug.

"Thanks, son," I grinned. "What's all this?"

"Well, I couldn't make breakfast like normal since Mom gave Rosa the day off and I…had company…"

"Which we will discuss after I accept all your gifts," I said seriously.

"And I figured since I'm not an only child anymore that we should change it up. I mean, in a couple of years, I'll be in college and I won't be living here and won't be here for breakfast, you know? We need a new tradition."

"Ah." My son's logic was clear. He hadn't forgotten at all.

"So, we have cake. Chocolate, your favorite, if I recall correctly. And we have the traditional pizza and hot dogs on the way, special ordered from that place you like across town, Mom's gone to get it. And we have gifts…"

"No Ryan, though. He's not out there," Summer said. She blushed bright red when she met my gaze. "Hi, Mr. Cohen."

"I think you can call me Sandy after this morning," I teased. She turned redder.

"Dad, stop hitting on my girlfriend," Seth scolded. "I already made her wash her mouth out with soap."

"Twice," Summer whispered, sticking her tongue out at him.

"So, where's Ryan?" Seth asked me.

"I haven't seen him since this morning."

"It's like, four, now. He didn't say he was going out?" Seth asked, clearly confused. "'Cause we had a schedule worked out…"

"So he's in on this, too?" I asked. I was impressed.

"He knew what time to be here," Seth shrugged, not confirming or denying his involvement.

"He's a little down. I mean, it's father's day and if Teresa hadn't lost the baby, they'd probably be celebrating…" Summer said as she set the table.

I glanced at Seth who was just as surprised as me.

"Summer…how do you know that she lost it?" I asked.

"I asked him," She replied. She looked up at us, confused. "You didn't ask him?"

"He never said anything and we didn't want to push him…" I replied.

"Damn. I never thought of asking," Seth muttered from beside me.

"Chino's not made of glass. You should've just asked him. She had an 'ectopic' pregnancy. It was pretty…dramatic, I think, but Teresa's okay. He had a rough couple of weeks out there," She said quietly.

"Oh." I should've asked him.

"Okay. Back to the task at hand. It's Father's day and we're celebrating. I have here for you, lots of useless stuff for your office," Seth said. He handed me a large box. I opened it and found several 'blocks' that must be intended as paperweights. They contained pictures of my family. One block had pictures of Kirsten, one with pictures of Seth and one with the whole family, including Ryan.

"Ryan doesn't get a block because there's like no pictures of him in the albums. We tried to chase him with the camera last week, but he's a quick little bastard," Seth explained.

"Wow. These are nice." Perfect.

"And this is Summer's idea." Seth handed me a box.

"I get one for my Dad every year," She said.

I opened the box and was impressed by the shiny gold cufflinks inside.

"They're shaped like money, in memory of Grandpa. Who has none," Seth joked.

"Thank you."

"Everything else is food-related. My budget's pretty tight after my little vacation this summer…" He started but I had to give him a hug.

I didn't care about the gifts, they were great, but the fact that my son was home and he cared about me was all that I needed.

"God, Dad, clingy much?" Seth smiled as he shook off my hug. "You should get out more."

"I'm back…" Kirsten walked in laden with steaming pizza boxes and bags.

"And I'm out of here. I'll call you later," Summer gave Seth a quick kiss and smiled at Kirsten on her way out.

"Where's Ryan?"

"He should be back soon," Seth said automatically.

"But that's not the question. Where is he?" Kirsten replied.

"Hey, am I late?" Ryan rushed into the kitchen from the patio.

"Just in time," Kirsten smiled. "Where you been?"

"I was in the poolhouse," He said quietly.

"Summer went to get you and you weren't there," Seth said immediately.

Ryan didn't deny it, he simply shrugged and started helping Kirsten with the takeout.

Seth looked at me to question him but I didn't want to upset Ryan. Not today. It was a good day.

Kirsten and Seth started to bicker about the toppings on the pizza, he didn't like olives but she did and even though they'd halved it, Seth insisted that the olive flavor would waft over to his side. I was flipping the paperweights around and looking at the family memories that Seth had chosen for the cubes.

"I see Seth already gave you his presents," Ryan said quietly. He was damned quiet, I hadn't even heard him approach me.

"Yes, they're great."

"You could never be forgotten, you know," He said quietly. "Not today. You're like the community father. You're like the Sandy Cohen Helpline."

I smiled and started to speak but he wasn't done.

"So I thought that you deserved this. Hopefully, I won't need it again…but in case you ever get into a bind…" He handed me a small card the size of a business card. I recognized it from a Monopoly game. It read _Get Out Of Jail Free_.

"Thank you."

"Hopefully you won't need it either, but it's there anyway." He gave me a sideways smile.

I flipped the card over and he had scrawled a phone number on the back, his cell phone number.

It wasn't a gift, it was a treasure. Both his boys were home and he was going to be the father that they deserved.


End file.
